This Monday, the 44th judge of Bogotá sentenced former president Álvaro Uribe Vélez for the crimes of procedural fraud and bribery in criminal proceedings.
After announcing her decision, the first deputy prosecutor before the Supreme Court of Justice, Marlene Orjuela, requested a sentence of 108 months in prison.
In her speech, the investigative body's representative highlighted the seriousness of the two crimes for which former President Uribe was found guilty.
He also requested a fine of 1,600 times the current legal minimum wage, as stipulated by law, and a nine-year ban from holding public office.
This is the moment when Judge 44 of Bogotá condemns Álvaro Uribe Vélez for procedural fraud and bribery in criminal proceedings, and acquits him of the charge of bribery of witnesses. https://t.co/if1kX8q65f
— Semana Magazine (@RevistaSemana) July 29, 2025
For his part, attorney Jaime Granados, the former president's defense attorney, strongly opposed imposing a restraining order to enforce the first-instance ruling.
He also stated that the arrest warrant is completely unnecessary since the former president has always defended himself in freedom and has duly responded to court summonses.
It should be noted that before the Prosecutor's Office intervened in this final stage of the trial against former President Uribe, the judge, when sentencing him for two of the three crimes, said:"It has been proven beyond a reasonable doubt that Álvaro Uribe Vélez fraudulently directed Diego Javier Cadena Ramírez to commit the crimes of bribery in criminal proceedings in homogeneous competition and procedural fraud in homogeneous competition."
The Prosecutor's Office is requesting a 108-month prison sentence for former President Álvaro Uribe Vélez. https://t.co/if1kX8q65f
— Semana Magazine (@RevistaSemana) July 29, 2025
The justice administrator added: "These behaviors also make it clear that the legal rights of the administration of justice were seriously affected, the rights protected both by the crime of bribery in criminal proceedings and by procedural fraud, and that, as has already been highlighted, this was not exercised against any judge but rather directly against the Supreme Court of Justice."
As part of the judge's extensive arguments for her mixed ruling, she also acknowledged the videos taken with a spy watch, evidence that had been rejected by Uribe's defense.
"The recording is authentic, beyond a shadow of a doubt. Consequently, there is no absolute certainty about the authors present on the recordings, the identity of the voices, the place, and the time; therefore, the assessment will be made in context," the judge stated.
Iván Duque spoke out after learning the outcome of the ruling against former President Álvaro Uribe: "He is innocent and he is not alone. His integrity has been evident throughout his life." https://t.co/if1kX8q65f
— Semana Magazine (@RevistaSemana) July 29, 2025
During the ruling, the 44th Bogotá District Court judge stated that the former president acted as a"determiner" in getting lawyer Diego Cadena to offer a series of benefits to former paramilitary Juan Guillermo Monsalve so he would sign a retraction.
Considering the wiretaps conducted in 2018, the judge concluded that the former president maintained constant conversations with attorney Cadena, who informed him of all his actions while in prison.
